


Pride of the Herd

by HarryLime03



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: F/M, Family Feels, Romance, True Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-15
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-09-18 14:58:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16997172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HarryLime03/pseuds/HarryLime03
Summary: A few months after they were married, a jaguar husband and his giraffe wife find themselves about to become a family.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> With chapter art by the amazing Ittybittykittytittys!
> 
> https://twitter.com/ittybittykt/status/1073824110898225152

Molly Gilberto was very nervous.

 

She was sitting in a big-and-tall restroom stall, staring at a diminutive plastic stick in her hand.  A few weeks previously, she and her husband had proclaimed during a particularly passionate lovemaking session their shared desire for children.  Whole herds of children, to be specific.  She had said at the time that there was no way that they couldn’t have conceived, but a part of her doubted it.  Interspecies relationships producing children were exceedingly rare.  They weren’t _impossible_ , but the odds against them without expensive fertilization clinic help were very high.  Something about the species genetics not matching just right.  So, while she smiled at the passionate memory, she had sadly resigned herself to acceptance that it would stay just a passionate memory.

 

But then she was late.

 

Molly dismissed it initially.  Thought that it was just a quirk of nature; nothing is always exactly exact.  But it still never came.  So that same morning, after Desmond had left for work, she sat down and worked out the dates for her whole cycle for the first time since she started dating the jaguar she now called her husband.

 

And that passionate night had fallen right at the end of the range of dates when the chances were at their highest.

 

So, there she found herself, sitting in a bathroom stall in the middle of her parking enforcement shift holding a Savanna Nursery-brand giraffe pregnancy test, her stomach doing somersaults inside her.

 

She was so focused on the test that she jumped halfway to the ceiling when the stall beside her trumpeted.  “What the heck?!  Is there an earthquake or something?!”

 

Molly looked down.  Her right leg was twitching rapidly…and making her knee knock on the stall divider at a rapid pace.  She forced her leg to stop.   She was about to apologize to the elephant beside her for the vibration, when the test began to show its results.

 

Her heart skipped a beat as her eyes went wide.

 

**

 

Desmond Gilberto was very happy.

 

He had managed to finish his walkthrough faster than expected.  Thanks to Mr. Big’s patronage, which he got through a former colleague of Molly’s, Desmond had established himself as the rodent-sized authority at his architecture firm.  What had started as a dream house for Mr. Big’s daughter Fru-Fru had developed into a stream of business from the shrew families, who had then spread his skill and professionalism to other rodents by word of mouth.  Where before he had worked on commercial towers and malls, Desmond now found himself giving biweekly walkthroughs of mansion blueprints to diminutive customers who could tour the life-sized printings like model homes.

 

Today’s customers hadn’t taken very long to approve the blueprint.  They hadn’t lingered long in any one room, generally just proclaiming their approval and moving on.  Desmond had gotten the impression that they were just fascinated by the process of their house being designed by a giant, and didn’t really care about the details.  But regardless, it had let him take a longer-than-usual lunch break, which had translated into him being able to enjoy a few cups of coffee at his favorite shop before he drove over to the neighborhood Molly was working to join her for lunch.

 

He parked his classic grand tourer and paid the meter.  Desmond smiled to himself.  He didn’t _use_ to do that;  he used to gamble that he’d be faster than the meter maid making her rounds.  He had been right roughly two-thirds of the time.  Marrying a meter maid had changed his perspective on the matter fairly quickly.  At the very least, a buck’s worth of change as insurance to never have to explain to his wife why one of her coworkers had ticketed him was easily a bargain.

 

He stared down the street for a moment.  Where was that bistro again?  Molly had mentioned how she wanted to try it the last time she worked this neighborhood.  He quickly spotted his wife; she was the only giraffe on the street, let alone the only one wearing a city parking enforcement uniform.  He waved to her with a smile.  “Hey Molly!”  Her head snapped around, and the anxious look she had on her face was visible plain as day.  Desmond paused; what could be wrong?

 

As soon as she located him, Molly began to walk over to where he stood.  However, about halfway there, she broke out into a run, tears streaming down her face.  Desmond frowned.  “Molly?  What’s wrong?  Did som-“

 

He was cut off as Molly reached him, picked him up and began to spin him around, hollering at the top of her lungs. “WE’RE GOING TO HAVE A FAMILY!”

 

For a brief moment, Desmond was confused, the stares of the pedestrians seeming more pressing…then the realization hit him like a truck.  His eyes went wide.  “NO WAY!”

 

“YES!”

 

“YOU’RE PREGNANT?!”

 

“ _YES!_ ”

 

**

 

“Where do you want the cake?” Desmond called.

 

“Hm?” Molly glanced back from hanging a bundle of balloons.  “Put it in the center of the table, Cuddlecat.  Sheryl will set up the drinks around it.”

 

It was Sunday, a few months down the line.  The two of them were in Molly’s parking enforcement break room, setting up a party.  A fair share of Molly’s friends were her fellow meter maids, so it only seemed appropriate to hold the baby shower in the place everyone knew they would fit in.  They certainly didn’t have the room back at their apartment.

 

Molly finished tying the knot, and snorted in appreciation of her handiwork.  All around the room, bundles of light blue balloons hung in the air, setting the mood.  They complimented the periwinkle blue turtleneck sweater she was wearing   She laid a hand gently on her growing belly; the ultrasound the day before had revealed a baby boy, and she wanted everyone to know it.

 

Desmond passed by, pulling a green can of Coco Cola out of his pocket.  “You know, in a few more weeks, you could use that as a shelf.  We could even get a tra-*WHAP*”

 

Molly smacked him on the nose with the bush of her tail.

 

“…I deserved that.”

 

They stared at each other for a moment, and then started laughing together.

 

“Oh ho ho!” came a shaky voice from the door.  “I *thought* I smelled a son!  It was a little different, but the boy was definitely in there.”

 

Molly brightened.  “Mabel!  You’re early!”

 

The old goat chuckled as she shuffled her walker in.  “Am I?  Figures that the day I set off early is the one day the ZTA doesn’t have any delays.”

 

Desmond laughed as he went over to help her with the bag in her hand.  Mabel glanced around, making sure that she was still the only guest who had arrived.  “So, sonny, you been keeping up with up with her hunger?”

 

Desmond nodded, taking a sip from his can as he walked alongside her.  “Oh yeah, easily.  She hasn’t even started having any weird cravings yet.  We’re just doubling our meals, and she’s eating the extra.”

 

Mabel chuckled again.  “No…not THAT hunger.  You been giving Molly enough Vitamin D?”

 

Desmond shot his coconut soda out through his nose.

 

“I just don’t want my best shift lead going unsatisfied,” Mabel cheerfully supplied.  “When I had all my kids, I wore dear old Timothy out at practically every hour of the day.  I think we went through a mattress with every kid,” she wistfully added.

 

“Oh, she’s not unsatisfied,” said Molly as she sauntered over.  “He’s keeping up splendidly.  That itch is most definitely being adequately satisfied.  He doesn’t even need an ice pack afterwards.  In fact,” she stroked the side of Desmond’s face delicately, bending her head down low enough to nuzzle his ear with her lips, “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he’s trying to put another one in me already.”

 

Desmond reflexively flicked his ear and tried to fight a blush with a chuckle.  He failed.  “Hey, what can I say?  You’ve got that glow.  You smell better, you’re eager, and there’s just something about looking at you and knowing I made you like that.  You’re just so amazingly beautiful, how could I resist?”

 

Mabel nodded sagely.  “Darn straight.  It’s good to know for certain at least one husband is keeping up with his husbandly duties in this day and age,” She sat down gingerly in one of the assembled chairs, a look of pain on her face that turned to relief as soon as her knees finished bending and all the weight was off of them.  “Ooooooooooh that feels so much better…  Now, where did I put my Ibuprofen Senior?”

 

Molly tut-tutted at the old goat as Mabel swallowed a few pills, a look of concern on her face. “Mabel, when are you going to retire?  I know you like being the department supervisor, but this can’t be good for you.”

 

“I’ll retire when I think the time is right,” she replied as she closed her eyes, a determined note in her voice that said she had given that answer many times to many people and hadn’t changed it yet.  “Besides, it keeps me in the sunlight,” She yawned a bahing yawn.  “Would you be so kind to waaaaaaaaaake me up when everyone else gets here?”

 

**

 

It was another hour before the last of the guests had shown up.  Mabel had sawed logs like a moose lumbermill the whole time.  As it turned out, she didn’t even need to be woken up; as soon as the slicer had touched the top of the frosting, Mabel snapped her head up and around with a “Who’s cutting cake?”

 

The assembled meter maids giggled.  The cake cutter, a matronly tigress, just glared back.  “Oh come on, I didn’t even tink the plate!  How could you possibly know?!”

 

“You’ve worked with me for long enough to know that I will ALWAYS know when a tulip-rose cake is being cut, Beatrice,” Mabel grinned back.  “Now, would you be a dearie and please bring this poooor old goat a piece?”

 

Beatrice “hmph”ed.  “…well, you ain’t getting mine, that’s for certain.”

 

The baby shower was in full swing.  Everyone had naturally gathered around Molly; an easy natural behavior when she towered over everyone else by entire yards.  Molly “ooh”ed and “ahh”ed at all the gifts as they were presented, and Desmond placed them to the side so that everyone could see that their gifts were appreciated just as much as everyone else’s.  The two of them then announced together that since the calf was a boy, they had already decided on a name for him: Maxwell.

 

“Oh, that’s such a cute name!” declared a younger hippo, to general assent.

 

The older women then turned to passing on whatever advice they had, for Molly’s and the younger ladies’ benefits.  An antelope had just finished an anecdote about why you should never keep a boy’s diaper changing room cold when there was a knock at the door, a large shadow visible through the frosted glass.

 

“Desmond, would you get that please?” asked Molly. “It’s probably someone from the ZPD, paying their respects.”

 

Desmond smiled and went for the door.  As he opened it, he quickly determined that it was not someone from the ZPD.

 

It was a polar bear in dark clothing, scowling at him.

 

For the briefest moment, Desmond was surprised.  But something inside him hardened.  He might only be an architect, but his wife and unborn child were behind him, and that gave him all the strength he needed.  Especially since he still exercised; jaguars were the strongest of the big cats.

 

The two predators scowled at each other for a few seconds before a familiar accent called from about the level of Desmond’s stomach.  “Surproise, dearie!”  He looked down, and was face to face with Fru-Fru, standing in the polar bear’s paw.

 

She noticed the look on the bear’s face and frowned.  “Raskin!  Where are your manners!  Be polite!”  She turned back to Desmond and waved her hand.  “Oh, ig*nore* him!  He’s just upset that he’s missing the game this mohnin’,”  Raskin rolled his eyes in a manner that said more than his voice ever could.

 

“Don’t give me that, Konstantin!  You all drew straws for duty today!  It was fair and you know it!”

 

“Fru-Fru, it’s good to see you again!” said Desmond, covering up the previous animosity in the air with a nervous laugh.  “But why are YOU here?”

 

“To celebrate, of course!”  She clapped her hands with her words.  Behind her, Raskin held up a large bag from the Tundratown Roebuck’s.  “Can we come in?”

 

“I guess so…?” Desmond glanced behind him, and Molly was beckoning them over with a smile.  He stood aside.  “But how did you know?”

 

“Well that’s the funniest thing!  I was talking to Georgie last week-you remember Georgie, right?-and she said ‘Oh you will never be*lieve*what happened today’!”  They were walking back towards the gaggle around the giraffe, and Fru-Fru was breathlessly talking about a mile a minute.  “So I say ‘No, what?’ and she says ‘That nice architect you sent me and Paulie to is having a baby goiyl!  His wife swung by to bring him lunch, and her belly was as big as the house we’re getting!’  So I talked to the family friend who recommended you to me-I hope you meet her one day, nicest bunny I’ve ever met, I named my firstborn daughter after her you know-and asked if the baby shower had happened yet, and she said it hadn’t but it was happening this Sunday so I swung by Roebuck’s on my way here-“  She paused as she took in the décor.  “Why do you have so much blue up?  You’re having a girl.”

 

“No, it’s a boy,” replied Molly.  “We saw on the ultrasound yesterday.”

 

Fru-Fru frowned.  “But you smell like you’re having a girl.”

 

“It’s true, you do,” said a raccoon, halfway through her piece of cake.

 

“I was surprised myself when I saw all the balloons,” added Beatrice.  “I thought you were bluffing us.”

 

“Weird,” said the antelope.  “I definitely smelled a boy.”

 

There was a murmur of assent.  Molly set her tea down and held out her hands.  “I don’t know what to say.  We’re having a boy.  We saw the ultrasound yesterday, and the obstetrician pointed it out,” She smiled.  “Desmond was proud.”

 

Desmond was suddenly found himself very interested in the balloon arrangements on the ceiling.

 

“We can sho-Oh!”  Molly suddenly gasped in shock and sat still.

 

“Molly?” Desmond immediately asked, his voice fraught with worry.  “Are you alright?”

 

“Yes yes, I was just surprised is all,” she replied breathlessly.  “I just felt the calf kick!”

 

The room was suddenly filled with a dozen squees and questions, as everyone crowded around her as she pulled up her shirt.  “How was it?” ”Was it a strong kick?” “Is he kicking again?”

 

“It felt nice and strong, but I don’t know…” she said cradling her bump, a slightly sad look on her face.  “I don’t know when Maxwell might kick again.  It’s kinda unfair that his daddy didn’t get to feel it too…”

 

“Baaaaaaaaah, that’s easy!” said Mabel as she shambled over.  “Just get a big bag of frozen peas and just rub your belly with it.  It makes them kick, works every time.”

 

There was a slight pause.  “My on-duty snack!” exclaimed the raccoon.  She bolted for the fridge in the room, and quickly returned with a bag of frozen peas that was slightly bigger than she was.  Molly placed it on the top of her stomach and rubbed it, Desmond pressing his face where she rubbed.

 

And sure enough, Maxwell kicked again.

 

“I…I can’t believe it,” said Desmond with a wistful tone in his voice.  “My son…I felt my son move for the first time…”  He met Molly’s eyes and smiled.  “It’s so amazing, isn’t it?”

 

“Yes, it is, honey,” she replied, cherishing the moment. She suddenly started.  “Ow!”

 

“What?” Desmond asked as he immediately sat up, suddenly anxious.  “Did I hurt you?”

 

“No, Maxwell just kicked again.  It didn’t _hurt_ , I was just surprised.  A little sharp prick instead of his solid kick before,” She paused, a look of confusion on her face.  “But I have the bag of peas on _this_ side of my belly…”

 

She moved it back to where Desmond had laid his head.  A little solid kick soon followed.  She moved it back to the other side.  Nothing happened for a few moments, but then there the little sharp prick was again.   She repeated the process, and got the same results.  Two decidedly different kicks.

 

A look of dawning comprehension spread across Fru-Fru’s face. “Ohmy _God_ you’re having TWINS!  That’s why I thought you were having a girl!”

 

“But we can’t be,” said Desmond, just as confused as his wife.  “We only saw one baby in the ultrasound.  And giraffe calves are big enough that they can’t hide behind each othe-”  He stopped and looked at his paw.  He extended one of his claws.  “…unless the other baby isn’t a giraffe, but a jaguar…”

 

The room was so silent you could hear a pin drop.  Then it did, and everyone started cheering and shouting.  Molly was getting hugs from everyone; Desmond was getting clapped on the back.  It was some time before either of them could get a word in from all the congratulations.

 

“You know,” said Mabel, finding a reserve of energy to boost her voice louder than before, “I think this changes things.  The time is right, now,”  She cleared her throat as everyone turned to face her.  “With this in mind, I would like to make an announcement:  I’m officially announcing my retirement, effective in a few months.”

 

She used the collective gasps to continue on before anyone could interrupt.  “And I am going to recommend Mrs. Molly Gilberto here to replace me as department head.   Don’t disagree,” she said, pointing a finger at Molly as she started to open her mouth, “You just found out you’re having two babies at once instead of just one.  You need the extra money.”

 

“But…how can I replace you?  Surely there are more qualified mammals.  Mammals with seniority?” said Molly, still reeling from two sudden shocks.

 

“Nope.  Nobody.  Surely you’ve noticed that Parking Enforcement has a high turnover?  The only ones who stay in as long as you have are retirees looking to stave off the boredom,”  Behind her, Beatrice nodded.  “And they just want an easy job to keep them occupied, not a managerial position.  Besides, dearie, I’ve watched you.  You made shift lead for a reason.  I know you’ll do fine running the show,”  She smiled.  “Don’t worry, I can keep going until you get back from maternity leave.”

 

“Thank you, Mabel…” said Molly, tears in her eyes.  “You don’t know how much this means to me…”

 

A second wave of congratulations started anew, before Fru-Fru headed them off.  “Wait!” she shouted.  “Wait wait!  Raskin, put me down,”  She hopped off the bear’s paw onto the table, next to the cake.  “You’re having twins when you were only expecting one!  You have to get two of everything now!”

 

A look of comprehension dawned on Molly’s face, but Fru-Fru waved her hand before it could turn to despair.  “No, don’t you worry.  Your husband does good work for my family, and we reward that kind of loyalty.”

 

“But I only design houses?”  Desmond was confused, and a little apprehensive; he wasn’t totally ignorant.  He had heard the rumors about her father, and he remembered the aura of uneasy menace he gave off the day he visited the firm’s office to see how Fru-Fru’s house was coming along.

 

“Yes, good ones,” replied Fru-Fru as she pulled out her phone.  “Every one of us who you’ve designed a house for has been very satisfied.  We ask for houses, you give us homes.  It’s not something you expect from someone as big as you are, so we’re grateful,” She smiled.  “And Daddy is grateful that you’ve vindicated the trust he placed in you.  You’re A Guy He Knows, that he can send family and business associates to knowing that they’ll be treated right and taken care of.  That’s something he holds in very high regard, and he always rewards those who do right by him.  Speaking of-“  She dialed on her phone and put it to her ear.  It immediately picked up.  “Hoooiiigh, Dimitri!  Is Daddy busy?  I need him to call Roebuck’s to get their family discount for me!”  She paused.  “It’s only Rattigan, he can take a 5-minute break for a phone call.”

 

The women crowded around Molly again; the hippo had produced a tablet and they were starting to go through the infant section of Roebuck’s online catalogue.  Desmond was clapped on the back again, harder than before.  He turned around; it was Raskin.  And he was smiling.

 

“Congratulations.”

 

“Uh…thank you?” Desmond replied a little nervously.  He heard the rumors about the family’s polar bear attendants as well.

 

“Don’t worry,” the bear said in his thick Tundratown accent, still smiling.  “Twins only seem hard to deal with as little cubs.  You’ll manage fine.”

 

“Thank you,”  Desmond chuckled a little.  “It’s still a little overwhelming, I guess?”

  
“Oh, they only SEEM hard to deal with as little cubs.  Just wait until they get personalities and the ability to walk on their own.”

 

“…that’s very comforting.”

 

It was Raskin’s turn to chuckle, a long low sound.  He pulled out his phone and unlocked it as he showed it to the jaguar beside him.  His home screen was a picture of him kneeling, a gigantic smile that simply did not match his earlier demeanor on his face.  Beside him, two identical little girls were kissing him on his cheeks.  “I have twins of my own.  They’re the light of my life.  They might have been difficult, but I wouldn’t have traded those years for anything,”  He put the phone back up.  “Fatherhood is something you’ll cherish for the rest of your life, no matter how hard the journey is.  You’ll do fine.”

 

Desmond stared at the bear for a moment, not sure how exactly to respond to the maybe/maybe not enforcer giving him fatherhood advice.  He decided to nod.  “Thanks again, I’m going to make damn sure I treat them right.  All of them.  Molly, Maxwell-”  He paused.  “Well, the rest of them don’t know it yet, but the name we decided on if we were going to have a girl was ‘Michelle’.”

 

Raskin nodded.  “A good name.  A pretty name.  I like you more and more with every minute.”

 

Desmond raised an eyebrow.  “You like me?”

 

“Yes.  Ever since you opened that door.  You didn’t back down,” A look crossed his face.  “You were ready to defend your family.  I don’t see that very often when push comes to shove.  I knew right then that you were going to make a good father.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noontime Showdown in Tundratown!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the massive delay! I wanted to publish with the chapter art for this chapter, since it was so good.
> 
> Here it is, courtesy of the amazing IttyBittyKittyTittys once again!
> 
> https://i.imgur.com/xhnVacZ.jpg

Next month, Molly was still on the job, working Tundratown’s meters.

 

Her doctor approved of her work; it was a way to keep her moving and exercising up until the final month.  Good for her and the babies, he said.  Agnes approved of her work; Molly needed to learn all the various special parking regulations for each Zootopia district by heart if she was going to take over the whole department.  Mayor Mousekwitz approved of her work; it proved how much of a go getter and determined worker she was, and smoothed over her appointment with the city council.   Desmond approved of her work; it kept her active, and kept her from getting bored sitting at home feeling useless and unwanted.

 

She smiled.  Of course, out of those four, only Desmond was giving her a blissful foot massage every night after each shift.

 

Her stomach grumbled, and was joined by a small sharp prick.  She laid her hand on her belly, on top of her coat.  “Shhh, Mommy’s here, Michelle,” she cooed.  “I’ll be eating our special lunch in just a little bit,”  Ever since they had discovered Michelle, Molly had been eating extra protein for her.  She still wasn’t fully used to the taste of all the different kinds of fish, even if Desmond insisted that halibut and shrimp was a delicious combination.  But her baby needed it, and would continue to need it until she was weaned, so by God, she ate fish with her regular leafy diet every single meal every single day.

 

She had been worried, initially.  “What will this do to my son?” she had asked her obstetrician.  The giraffe had waved his hoof, and told her to forget it.  Extra protein at this stage of development just meant he would be a big boy when he was born.  “Big and strong, just like his father,” she had warmly smiled as she squeezed Desmond’s paw.

 

Then Molly asked what the lack of protein had done to her daughter, before they knew she even existed.  That the obstetrician was a little dodgier with that question.  He admitted, he didn’t exactly know.  Hybrid children were rare enough as it was, and they were almost unknown with giraffes. He’d said with some pride that he was writing the book on it as he went.  But, he had added, there were predator/prey relationships before that went down the same road.  Lions and zebras, mostly.  And until the fetus was developed enough, the mother didn’t know if she was carrying a cub or a foal.  If a zebra mother didn’t know that she was carrying a lion cub, how could she know to artificially increase her protein intake?  As long as she had started at some point, the cub had been born healthy.

 

Admittedly, he added, they were also born small.  “Just like I was,” she had softly agreed.

 

All that summed up into Molly sampling the local predator fare in whatever district she was enforcing that day.  She got a fair number of odd looks, but she didn’t really pay them any mind as she gobbled down her meal.   Out of all the districts, she liked Sahara Square the least.  The only fish she could find there was the BugBurga FilletBurga; she didn’t especially like eating bugs.

 

A scent on the wind caught her attention.  It smelled of swordfish sandwiches, probably with tartar and swiss cheese.  And close.  A little prick immediately followed.  “Okay then, we’re all agreed,” she smiled.  She finished writing up her last ticket, one for an SUV parked squarely in front of a fire hydrant, put it on the windshield, and turned to go find those delicious-smelling sandwiches. 

 

She made it about ten feet.  “What the fuck is this?!”  She turned around: a bulky orange tiger and two reindeer had gotten out of the SUV.  All three of them were big.  The tiger was holding the ticket in his paw, looking at it and her with open disgust.

 

“I said, what the fuck is this?”

 

She pursed her lips.  This wasn’t her first go ‘round, and these weren’t the first scofflaws to get upset they were ticketed.  “It’s a parking ticket.”

 

“What the fuck for?”

 

“For parking in front of that bright red object.  You know, the _fire hydrant_.”

 

“You must be new here, Talltree,” said the tiger as he balled up the ticket.  “You must not know who I am.  They call me Viktor.  And Viktor parks where ever Viktor pleases.  Ain’t that right, boys?”  The two reindeer nodded and voiced their agreement.

 

Molly held her emotionless gaze, the one every government employee learns to use when dealing with agitated citizens.  “You’ll receive a new ticket in the mail.  If you wish to fight it, it will have a date in Tundratown Municipal Court for you to do so.  Have a good day.”  She turned to leave again.

 

“Oh come on, Talltree!” a different edge came into the tiger’s voice.  “You don’t gotta be like that!  Maybe we can work something out?”  A toothy grin spread across Viktor’s face as he inhaled a deep breath through his nose.  “Come on, now.  I know pregger girls are horny as _fuck_ all the time!  I can smell it on you!”

 

Molly went ramrod straight.

 

Viktor gestured crudely at his crotch.  “And I’m packing something _so_ big, I know even you will feel it!  I made an elephant unable to walk just fucking yesterday!” He pointed at her belly and shrugged.  “Besides, it’s not like your babydaddy will _know_.  How could he?”

 

Molly snorted, the passive look long gone from her face.

 

He laughed.  “So let’s work it out!  You forget about this ticket, let me fuck you until you can’t talk, and I’ll forget about the ticket and let walk out of her with your pretty long legs in one piece,”  Viktor let threat hand in the air for a moment, then he shrugged and tapped his chest.  “Once you have a pred, you’ll never go to another bed!” he proclaimed with a bellowing laugh, as if it was the final line of a sales pitch.

 

The reindeer started to laugh with him.

 

Molly clenched her teeth.  With every fiber in her body, she kept her voice level.  “Don’t you _dare_ ever speak to me like that again.  I would never sleep with the likes of you, and I damn sure wouldn’t betray my husband for some icebox gutter trash!”  She spat on the ground, her attempt at calm failed, her temper rising.  “If you knew what’s good for you, you’d leave before I was able to call the police for threatening a city employee!  Get out of my sight!”

 

The laughter died on all three of their lips.  “Well now, ain’t that a shame,” said Viktor coldly.  “I’d never had a giraffe before.  And those legs of yours look so damn good.  It’ll be such a shame to fucking break them.  **_Get. Her_**.  She needs to be taught a lesson about turf and respect.”

 

At his spoken command, the two reindeer charged past him.

 

Molly was surprised for a moment, but she immediately steeled herself.  She’d had to defend herself from angry scofflaws before, but today was different.  Today she was fighting for three, and she felt a strong kick from Maxwell as if to reinforce the point.  So, she was forced to use her nuclear option immediately.  She planted her feet to give her the support she needed, and when the reindeer got close enough, she dropped down on both, like a sprinter.  Like she was going savage.

 

And then she swung her head at them.

 

The neck of a giraffe is a wonderful thing.  It’s full of strong muscles and ligaments, and unlike most other mammals, it’s designed to move and curve in a fairly large range of movement.  It's capped by a very thick boney skull, with two ossicones sticking out on top.

 

In other words, it’s a giant flail.

 

In the olden days, that’s how disputes were settled in the giraffe tribal families.  Ritual combat between the aggrieved parties, using just their heads.  In modern times, it’s not really seen much anymore.  Most mammals don’t even know why giraffes had horns on the top of their head; it’s much more civilized to just punch and kick someone instead of flailing your head around.  But giraffes still had their thick skulls, and there were still mammals who knew how to use them to their maximum effect.  Molly Gilberto’s father was one of them, and he made sure to pass on some of his knowledge to his daughter.

 

She caught both reindeer completely unaware.  The one on the left briefly wondered if she was going to try and meet him head on, like the rutting contests he sometimes had over does.  The thought pleased him, so he lowered his head further to bring his antlers fully to bear.  This was a crucial mistake, since it brought Molly’s head out of view.  He didn’t see it swinging at him until a fraction of a second before it hit, long past the point of trying to dodge.

 

Molly brought her head in fast and hard, angling herself so that the top of her scalp lead as the spearpoint, aimed right at the reindeer’s center mass.  She caught him hard in the chest, the impact instantly knocking all the wind out of him before breaking his ribs.  The ossicones hitting less than half a moment later did their part breaking a few more.  The reindeer was already off balance, angled forward to try and headbutt Molly, so as she continued her followthrough, he was lifted into the air and tossed aside.  He flew into a line of trashcans, and was still, mercifully unconscious.

 

The reindeer on the right was struck dumb.  Before, the giraffe he was charging had gotten down onto her hands, looking ridiculous with her pregnant belly hanging down more vulnerable than before, her head high above him. He idly thought that she was trading her pregnancy for the ability to live long enough to have more of them.  Then he blinked, and his buddy was flying through the air over his head, the giraffe’s head high to his right.  It seemed like time was moving in slow motion; he tracked his buddy for a heartbeat, then glanced up.  The giraffe’s face was contorted into a mask of rage.  Her eyes were locked onto him, filled with anger.  Then her head reached the apex of the followthrough, and he realized in horror what was about to happen:  it was at its point of highest potential energy.  He had just enough time to process this before she brought her head back down.

 

This time Molly aimed at the reindeer’s skull.  He was turning, trying to dodge.  But it was too little too late, and she slammed her head into his with an echoing *WHACK*.  The reindeer went down like he had been tranq’ed; out cold, the victim of the worst rutting he’d ever taken part in.  He hit the cold ground and his momentum carried him forward halfway across the street.

 

It was over in mere seconds.  Two swings of her neck, and both reindeer thugs were unconscious.  Two for two.

 

Viktor stood temporarily silent as he took in his men going down so quickly.  He glanced at Molly.  She was cloaked in fury.  The hair of her mane was flying wildly, her meter maid hat long gone.  Her face contorted into a snarl that both looked utterly out of place compared to her previously gentle composure, and yet looked utterly natural on her.

 

“Is that all?”  Molly spat at him.  “Is that the best you’ve got?  Did you think I was easy prey?  That you could just casually threaten to hurt me if I didn’t sleep with you, and that I was some tall awkward waif that would instantly get on her knees for you?  Fuck you!”  The snarl widened, exposing her teeth.  She was riding her anger like she had never done before, the threat to her and her babies so great it had made her truly lose her composure for the first time in her life. “This is what insults me the most.  You didn’t even think I was a threat!  You thought that two _REINDEER_ would be all it took to take me down!”

 

“You know, you’re right,” calmly replied Viktor.  “I completely misjudged you.  Lari and Toumi were never the brightest bulbs in the box, but I still thought they would be all it took to knock some sense into you.  I apologize for underestimating you,” he snarled as be bared his teeth and flicked out his claws.  “I’ll be happy to give you the attention you deserve.”

 

A black luxury car hastily pulled into the row of parked cars up the block with a screech.

 

“Bring it, kitten!” bit back Molly.  “I’m not scared by the likes of you! I know what a real predator looks like.  My jaguar makes me his prey every night and makes me scream his name!  Someone toothless as you isn’t even fit to sharpen his claws!”

 

Viktor charged with a furious roar.  This time, he was ready for Molly’s head butts.  He was on guard, constantly watching where her head was high above him.  Giraffe wisdom had cautioned that:  the flail only really works once.  You get one good flurry before your opponent catches wise that giraffes have natural weapons of their own and they start watching the skies.  That led in turn to another bit of giraffe wisdom: once mammals were reminded that giraffes did actually have natural weapons of their own, they quickly forgot that giraffes were civilized just like them.

 

So when Viktor got close enough, Molly just bounced herself up on one arm to give herself leverage, and put a hard right cross right into Viktor’s gut.

 

The bulky tiger went flying back, an almost comical look of surprise on his face, and rebounded off his own SUV almost 20 feet away with a muted thud.  He lay coughing and wheezing for air on the pavement for almost a full minute.  Behind him, the black car disgorged two large mammals in dark clothing who quickly started making their way up the block.

 

Viktor hauled himself back up.  “Is…is that all?  Bitch?”  he coughed, trying to echo Molly’s own words.  “Is that the best you’ve got, you predophile whore?  Lari hits me harder than that when we spar!  That was noth-*HACK*-ing!”

 

Molly stood back up, drawing herself back up to her full height, the fight long over in her mind.  She crossed her arms and glared at him.  “I’m sure.”

 

“Wrong move, Talltree!” Viktor wheezed, his hardy tiger physique already fighting through the pain.  “You just knocked the wind out of me!  My legs are just fine!  I’m a fucking tiger; I can jump high enough to rip your carnivore fuck trophy right out of you easy!  And you just exposed it!”

 

Before Molly could react, before she could even process the threat, someone else had processed it.  Large paws suddenly grabbed him tight around his arms, and he was hauled up off his feet.  He yelped in anger and tried to escape the grip, but he instantly froze when he was turned around and found himself face to face with a glowering Konstantin Raskin.  Molly had seen his glare before at her baby shower; the look he had given Desmond was one of annoyance.  The look he was giving Viktor right then was of righteous fury.

 

 “Raskin?!  What the fuck are you doing?!”  stammered Viktor, utterly confused.  “Don’t get me, _get HER!”_

 

“Why would I go after a mother defending her unborn children?” asked Raskin, his voice deathly quiet.  “Why would I go after her and not _you?_ ”

 

“Because she attacked me and my boys!  We can’t let her get away with that!”

 

“Oh?  _She_ attacked _you_?” asked Raskin, a look of faux curiosity on his face.  “That’s strange, because one of our protection clients called us to say that some of our muscle were threatening a pregnant meter maid in broad daylight right in front of his store,”  The bravado fell off Viktor’s face like a curtain, deep-pitted despair replacing it.  “I could hear you shouting and laughing over the phone,”  Raskin continued quietly, the glare returned to his face with a vengeance.  “I heard you say some very interesting things.  Things that made me get here as soon as I possibly could.”

 

He turned to address the bear holding Viktor.  “Put him in the car.  We’re going downtown.”

 

Viktor froze, terror plain on his face.  “W…what are you doing to do to me?”

 

“Me?” said Raskin, his voice returned to normal.  “ _I_ am going to do nothing, because _you_ are going to call on Officer Hopps at the ZPD’s Precinct One and confess.  You are going to confess to her everything you just did, and then you are going to plead guilty at your trial.  Say you immediately had regrets and wish to set your conscience right.”

 

A wave of relief splashed over Viktor, which was soon replaced with confusion and then dawning realization and anger.  “That’s going to put me behind bars for years!  Why the fuck would I do that?”

 

Raskin grabbed Viktor’s face and locked eyes with him.  “ _Because you don’t know what **I** am going to do to you for trying to kill innocent children if you don’t_,” he hissed.  He jerked Viktor’s face to look at Molly.  “ _And you don’t know what Mr. Big will do to you when he finds out you threatened the wife of a mammal he trusts enough to send his own family to.”_

 

He let Viktor’s face go and nodded. The other bear nodded back and hauled the tiger away.  Raskin then turned to face Molly for the first time, and a smile crossed his face.  He walked over to near where she was standing.  “We apologize for taking so long.  We only got the call from one of the people who we protect a few minutes ago.  You are unharmed, yes?  How are your babies?”

 

A pang of panic sprang into Molly’s mind.  She remembered reading horror stories of women having miscarriages from strenuous activity, and she didn’t know if hybrid infants were more susceptible to that risk.  She quickly touched her belly, and was immediately relieved when both of her children responded with a kick.  It was as if they were saying “Yes yes, but since that’s over, can we _please_ have some lunch?”

 

“They’re fine,” she breathed in relief.  “We’re fine.”


	3. Chapter 3

They found them about an hour and a half later, while Molly was still eating.   Desmond squeezed her hand when he saw them heading their way.  He had dropped everything-even cancelling on a client right before a walkthrough-to rush to her side when she called him, and he had not let her hand go since he had made completely sure that she and their babies were alright.   It had made eating her sandwiches slightly difficult, but she hadn’t minded at all.  She wouldn’t have had it any other way.

 

 A ZPD patrol car pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant with its lights off, quickly finding a space in the relatively empty post-lunch rush lot.  Two diminutive officers hopped out and made a beeline through the front door towards Desmond and Molly’s table.  It wasn’t hard to find her, since Molly was the only giraffe at the restaurant; she might have been the only one in a five-block radius.  Molly was also the only patron sitting on the floor, since there was no other way to accommodate her at a table. 

 

“Mrs. Gilberto?” called the fox as he walked towards their table, beckoning the waiter as he did.  “Mrs. Gilberto, I’m Officer Wilde, and this is my partner, Sergeant Hopps.  We’d like to get a statement from you about the incident earlier.  Do you mind if we join you and Mr…?” He gestured at the jaguar beside her.

 

“Mr. Gilberto,” replied Molly.  “This is my husband, Desmond.  And not at all, Officer,”  She turned to the rabbit and gave her a small wave.  “Hello Judy!  Congratulations on the promotion!”

 

“Thanks, Molly!  Congratulations on yours as well!” replied Judy.

 

The fox looked between the two quizzically for a moment.  “You know each other?”

 

“Yup,” said Judy.  “She was my coworker for the few days I was stuck in Parking Enforcement.  It’s hard to forget a giraffe.”

 

“So…why did you let me think we were going in cold?” asked the fox, waving his hand questioningly.

 

“Because you needed the practice finding MOIs and introducing yourself to them,” replied Judy as she hopped up onto the table.  “If you knew this was going to be a casual interview, you would have acted completely differently.”

 

“How did you know this was going to be casual?” asked Nick with a raised eyebrow as he crossed his arms.

 

“Because I already talked to Molly over the phone,” said Judy.  “I mean, come on now, Nick.  We’re talking to her _here_ instead of at the station.  That should have clued you in.”

“…and you didn’t tell me this, why?...”

 

“Because you never asked,” She smirked at him.  “Trust but Verify, officer~.”

 

Nick sighed and pinched the bridge of his snout.

 

“Say, Molly?” asked Judy as she looked around.  “Where’s your waiter?  I need to ask him if he has chairs in our size.”

 

Almost as if he was psychic, a wolf in a white shirt immediately appeared at the table holding two tall chairs.  He set them down opposite the couple already at the table, and looked down to address Nick.  “Bonjour and Good Afternoon, Monsieur Wilde.  Would you like your usual today?  It iz on special.”

 

“No, thank you, Ricard,” replied Nick as he climbed up into the chair.  “I already ate lunch.  Just dessert today, please.”

 

“Ah, your usual dessert?”

 

“Eh, let’s do the dessert roulette.”

 

“But of course.  One blueberry and peach crème parfait coming up.  And for mademoiselle?” he asked, turning to Judy.

 

“Uh…” she said, looking slightly lost.  “I…don’t know what my options are, I’m sorry.  Do you have any recommendations?”

 

“Today, our vegetarian special is the Cucumber Caesar Salad.  It is zee usual favorite of Monsieur Wilde.”

 

“Oh, that sounds fantastic,” said Judy as she made her way to her chair.  “I’ll have that, please.”

 

“But of course,” Ricard turned to Molly.  “Would mademoiselle like another fried swordfish sandwich?”

 

“Yes please,” said Molly with a giggle.  “We’re very hungry today, apparently.”

 

“But of course,” said Ricard for the third time.  He nodded and made his way towards the kitchen.

 

Judy turned to look at Nick.  “How did he…?”

 

Nick stretched in his chair.  “I’ve been a regular customer of this place for close to ten years, I’d be surprised if he didn’t know what I look like by now.”

 

She glared at him.  “And you left me high and dry…why?”

 

He smirked back at her.  “Because you never asked.  ‘Trust But Verify, officer~’.”

 

She “Hmmmmmm”ed a cheeky smile back at him.

 

“So, Judy,” said Nick a few moments later.  “Since you two know each other, you want to handle the interview?”

 

“No,” answered Judy.  “You need the practice, and an interview with a MOI that’s predisposed to be cooperative is a good training exercise.  This one’s all yours, slick.”

 

Nick took a breath.  “Alright then,” He pulled out a pad and flipped it open.  “Okay!  Mrs. Gilberto, would you like to speak to us about the incident earlier this morning?”

 

“Molly, please.  And yes, of course,”  Desmond squeezed her hand again.  “I’d be happy to tell you everything that happened.”

 

“Right then, Molly,” He pulled out his phone and pressed around on it, bringing up the official transcript of Viktor’s confession.  “If you would, please start with what you were doing in the lead up to your encounter with Mr. Whiskov.”

 

**

 

“…so then I said, ‘Look dude, I don’t really care how great you think you rock that Speedo, you’re wearing the damn thing backwards!  Your ass cheeks are generating drag!’”

 

Everyone at the table laughed.  It was an hour later, and they were finishing up dessert.   Molly was smiling.  Desmond was telling stories about from his college swim team, his worry from earlier long past.  He had finally let go of her hand; hearing her say for the official record how she had handled the thugs with ease had discharged all his nervousness. 

 

“Geez Louise,” said Judy through her laughter.  “He didn’t realize?”

 

“Nope!” laughed Desmond.  “He thought that the little part was supposed to go in back to show off his butt!  He thought he was wearing a thong!  People had been wondering for _years_ why he was slower than everyone else in his size class!”

 

“Lion Above…” Nick shook his head.  “That boy ain’t bright.  Too many swimsuit competitons…”

 

“Would you believe he’s now the Business Correspondent on Channel 24’s daytime talk block?” said Desmond as he sipped his sixth espresso of the meal.

 

Nick sat bold upright.  “NO. WAY.  Mad Money Mickey is _THAT_ guy?!  The Midday Moolah Moron?!”

 

“The one and the same!  A proud holder of one of Rainforest A&M’s finest communications degrees.”

 

“THAT sure explains a lot!” Nick howled with laughter.  “No wonder he was so adamant about those damn bucket futures!  You will not **believe** how much money I made that month!  Oh _HELL_ I will never look at that antelope the same way again!”

 

Judy laughed over her crossed paws.  “Nick, since when do you watch the business news?”

 

“Judy, please.  I was a savvy entrepreneur,” Nick said as he wiped the tears out of his eyes.  “It would have been remiss of me to not consider what the masses were trying to invest in.”

 

“You know, I could probably haul you in for that,” she said with a grin.

 

“You’d have to find someone who’d own up to thinking investing in literal buckets was a smart idea first,” replied Nick with one of his own.  “Besides, I sold them buckets.  Sturdy ones!  I just never mentioned that they used to be soda cans in their recent past, is all.”

 

“I’ll be honest,” said Molly, “I wouldn’t have expected a police officer to have a…uh…history in such affairs.  Oh, uh, no offense,” she quickly added.

 

Nick waved his paw.  “None taken.  In fact, I’m flattered you’re surprised I was a conman instead of being surprised that I’m a cop now.”

 

“As it turns out,” Judy added, “Being in that line of ‘work’ requires you to have a good detail-oriented analytical mind.  I discovered that at the same time as I discovered he wanted to do good in his heart.  It would have been a waste for such a good detective to not wear the badge when it was clear that he wanted, so I insisted he join up,”  She gestured broadly with her hand.  “And thus, the ZPD’s newest rookie.”

 

“Why thank you, Sergeant,” Nick said.  “That was a very noble retelling of our first case together.  You even did a splendid job glossing over the times I gave you a run for your money, I’m very impressed.”

 

“You want me to tell them about both episodes with the carrot pen, Slick?”

 

“No no, that’s fine, I don’t think they need to hear about those,” Nick quickly added.  “I’m actually wondering something myself,” he gestured to the couple sitting across from him.  “A giraffe and a jaguar.  How’s THAT work?”  He nodded at Molly’s pregnant belly.  “I mean, obviously fairly well, but you know what I mean.  I’ve lived in Zootopia my whole life, and I can count the number of giraffes I’ve seen dating outside their species on one paw.”

 

“Well,” Desmond said as he took Molly’s hand again.  “It was love at first sight.  She’s so tall and graceful, with such a kind air about her.  I was drawn to her like a moth to a flame,” he sighed, cherishing the memory of that first day.  “Molly’s been my bedrock ever since we started dating.  I used to be prone to such flights of fancy, never sticking to one thing very long.  Hell, the only reason I’m an architect is because I was good enough at it that my professors ‘forgot’ to process my major-change paperwork until I was stuck with the program.  But she’s so studious.  She makes a plan, and she sticks to it,”  He smiled.  “She drives me to see things through.  She’s my inspiration to actually chart a course though life.  She’s the opposite that completes me.”

 

“’The opposite that completes me’,” Molly softly echoed with a smile.  “That describes my Desmond perfectly.  He’s my anchor.  He’s so _spontaneous_.  He gets an idea in his head to do something and he just does it.  He’s the one who taught me to just throw caution to the wind sometimes and live a little,” She giggled.  “That’s actually the reason I decided to go out with him on that first date!  I’d dated a few bulls before, but I was never really that happy.   I was actually taking a two-year break from dating at the time while I concentrated on my job.  But Dez knew my cousin, so we all started talking together, and he started to really pique my interest as a person.  So I just said to myself ‘Well, he’s hot and he’s strong and he clearly likes you…Aw, what the Hell!’,” She held up her ring.  “And the rest is history.”

 

“That’s so sweet,” Judy sighed.

 

“She really is,” Desmond beamed at her.  He frowned as he noticed the clock on the wall.  “Oh Good Lion, it’s almost 4 o’clock!  Damn, I hope we weren’t keeping you, or holding up a table here…”

 

“Nah,” dismissed Nick.  “Viktor Whiskov was a suspect in so many felonies that the ZPD could never pin on him.  Getting him dropped into our laps all tied up pretty with a bow for something that would make him do decades of hard time was like an early Christmas.  Fangmeyer and Snarlov practically threw a party once they put him in the holding cell.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Oh yeah.  Chief Bogo isn’t going to care much if we take all the time we want involved in his case.”

 

“Either way…” Molly signaled their waiter.  “Check please.  We’re so sorry we took so long, we’ll be out of your fur as soon as we’ve paid.”

 

“Zat is not necessary, mademoiselle,” said Ricard as he appeared at their table.  “It is taken care of.”

 

Molly was taken aback.  “Really?  After I ate so much swordfish?”

 

“Yes.  A local respectable businessman called us to say he would pick up your tab as a ‘mere token of gratitude for revealing and removing some deadwood in his business organization,’.”

 

“Oh!  Well, thank you.  And tell him thank you as well, please.” 

 

“You are welcome, and I will make sure of it. “

 

“What about our check?” asked Nick as he and Judy got ready to leave in turn.

 

“Monsieur Wilde, your meal is on ze house,” replied Ricard.

 

“What?  Why?” asked Judy as she shrugged her overcoat back on.

 

“Because I still owe him for his cutting me in on zat bucket enterprise a few years ago.”


End file.
